Talking with a Purpose
What is accountable talk? Accountable means expected to justify actions or decisions. Talk means to speak in order to give information or express ideas. Accountable talk means to speak in a way that justifies the learning; it is talking with a purpose. We have all heard it before or even thought it before - "My class just doesn't stop talking!" You, as the teacher, have the power to turn that talking into productive conversation with accountable talk.
Accountable talk can take on many forms, but the goal remains constant. With accountable talk, students are able to talk about their learning. This has a positive impact because talking about the content allows students to question, make connections, and deepen their understanding. It transforms students from passive content consumers to active participators in their own learning.
Accountable talk works best when students have sentence stems to follow and know that their thoughts will be heard. Some effective sentence stems include "I disagree with _______ because ______" and "I like what you said about ______. I think ______." Accountable talk can also be critical thinking questions posed to the students such as, "Why do you think that?" and "Can you tell me more?" This can take place in whole class discussions, group discussions, partner talk, and thinking to self.
Regardless of what the accountable talk looks and sounds like, it will be effective when used appropriately and with fidelity. To learn more and see pictures and videos with examples, please see my Accountable Talk Padlet.
